Eternal Daughter

Infobox VG
title= Eternal Daughter


caption=
developer= Blackeye Software
license = Freeware
publisher= Independent
distributor=
designer= Derek Yu, Jon Perry
series=
engine= Multimedia Fusion
version=
released= June 21, 2002
genre= Action-adventure
modes= Single player
ratings=
platforms= Windows
media= Download
requirements= Windows 98, ME, 2000 or XP
input= Keyboard

"Eternal Daughter" is a freeware action-adventure game created by amateur developers Derek Yu and Jon Perry and released on June 21, 2002 under their former pseudonym Blackeye Software. Heavily anticipated within the Klik community, it was in development for two years and has become one of the most well-known games made using the Multimedia Fusion software family. [cite web|title=Derek Yu: Games|url=http://www.derekyu.com/games.html|accessdate=2007-09-16]

tory

The introduction shows the Dungaga, an imperial industrialized race, conquering the more spiritual Lorian. The protagonist, Mia, is daughter of the Lorian priestess and an unknown father. Like the rest of her people, she is enslaved to do menial labor, under the supervision of her half-brother Hume. As she sees her Dungaga stepfather Gar hit her mother, she manifests a light-based magic that she uses to strike down Gar. At her mother's advice, she flees the village.

In her travels, Mia meets the enigmatic lizard-like Shulin, the slime-based Grodol warriors, a familiar baby dragon named Elanduru, and several Dungaga dissidents. It is revealed that the Dungaga are controlled by the three sons of the dark god Baphomet, who wish to summon him into the world. After defeating the three sons, Mia must rally the free people of the world, and obtain the blessing of the five gods, to strike at Baphomet's realm and defeat him. The Dungaga rebels eventually join their cause, led by Hume.

In Baphomet's temple, Hume redeems himself by taking a lethal arrow to the chest that was meant for Mia. Elanduru and Mia face off against Baphomet and defeat the dark god. Mia collapses shortly afterwards; her body is taken back by a Dungaga general, and the Shulin sacrifice themselves to seal the portal to Baphomet's realm. Mia never awakens or recovers from the battle. However, Eluriel, the god of light, reveals himself to be her father, and he takes her home to his celestial realm.

Gameplay

The gameplay of "Eternal Daughter" is based on a classic style of side-scrolling platform action, with added features such as secondary weapons and growth elements that are otherwise common in role-playing games: Items found throughout the game increase the strength of the player character's weapon or maximum number of health points. Also, as the game progresses, the player gains new abilities that can be used to explore areas of the game that were previously unreachable, progressively "unlocking" new locations within the game world.

Because of this combination of gameplay elements, comparisons are often drawn to "" and "Super Metroid", [cite web|last=D'Argenio|first=Angelo|title=Eternal Daughter|publisher=Uziana.com|date=2007-05-27|url=http://www.uziana.com/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=360&Itemid=26|accessdate=2007-09-16] popular console games that feature the same type of platform action combined with exploration-based adventure. This kind of action-adventure game, "Eternal Daughter" included, is sometimes referred to by fans as "Castleroid" or "Metroidvania", a portmanteau of "Castlevania" and "Metroid".

Reception

Upon its release, "Eternal Daughter" was greatly praised by the Klik community [cite web|title=Eternal Daughter|publisher=The Daily Click|url=http://www.create-games.com/download.asp?id=664&sa=true|accessdate=2007-09-16] and in 2004, the community website The Daily Click awarded it Ultimate Game of the Week. [cite web|last=Kraus|first=Rikus|title=We got a winner!|publisher=The Daily Click|date=2004-08-30|url=http://create-games.com/newspage.asp?id=1879|accessdate=2007-09-16] . Over the years, its popularity has spread and the game has been covered on websites like 1UP.com and Home of the Underdogs as well as receiving many fan reviews on personal and gaming-related blogs. Overall, the game continues to be praised for its graphical and musical presentation, [cite web|last=Street|first=Chris|title=RETRO REVIEW: Eternal Daughter|date=2007-04-04|publisher=Clickzine|url=http://www.clickzine.net/?p=126|accessdate=2007-09-16] challenging difficulty [cite web|title=Eternal Daughter|publisher=Home of the Underdogs|url=http://www.the-underdogs.info/game.php?id=3604|accessdate=2007-09-16] and high level of polish for an amateur-developed freeware game. [cite web|last=Sharkey|first=Scott|title=Freeloader vol. 2: Eternal Daughter|publisher=1UP.com|date=2004-06-30|url=http://www.1up.com/do/feature?cId=3130176|accessdate=2007-09-16] Also, in 2006, 1UP.com included "Eternal Daughter" in a list of the 101 best free games on the Internet. [cite web|last=Gladstone|first=Darren|title=101 Free Games: The Best Free Games on the Web|publisher=1UP.com|date=2006-02-15|url=http://www.1up.com/do/feature?pager.offset=2&cId=3148013|accessdate=2007-09-16]

In contrast, some say that the game is overrated and overhyped. Recurring complaints about the game are the inability to save anywhere but at the designated save points, that it's actually a very linear game [cite web|title=Eternal Daughter user reviews|url=http://www.acid-play.com/download/eternal-daughter/review.php|accessdate=2007-09-16] and that the difficulty is frustrating, rather than fair and balanced. [cite web|title=Eternal Daughter (2002)|url=http://entropypump.wordpress.com/2007/07/11/eternal-daughter-2002/|accessdate=2007-09-16]

References

ee also

*"Cave Story"
*"Aquaria" - Another game with graphics by Derek Yu, but it is not a freeware
*"I'm O.K - A Murder Simulator" - Another game with graphics by Derek Yu

External links

* [http://www.derekyu.com/ Homepage of Derek Yu]
* [http://www.jonperry.com/ Homepage of Jon Perry]